Huntington Creek is an important water resource for the communities and economies of Southeast Utah's San Rafael Swell Desert. It flows from high elevation timberland through Huntington Canyon, lowland farmland, and the desert before converging with Ferron and Cottonwood Creek to create the San Rafael River, an important tributary of the Green River. Providing for a myriad of uses, Huntington Creek is an excellent representation of successful water resource exploitation, rural growth, and environmental sustainability. The waters from Huntington Creek are used for agriculture and municipal uses as well as power generation by the Huntington Coal Fire Power Plant. The creek also supports healthy populations of beaver, elk, mule deer, native cutthroat trout, and brown trout. However, in 2012 a sever wildfire burned through the upper Huntington Creek drainage with particular intensity due to ongoing drought conditions and heavily degraded forests from beetle infestations. Significant portions of the Right Fork and Left Fork's forested slopes were lost entirely. Little vegetation remained to hold soils and drainages intact when heavy monsoonal rains followed the fire causing severe flooding. These floods destroyed the ephemeral streams and side canyons of the Right Fork of Huntington Creek, and tore through the Mainstem of Huntington Creek. Extreme channel entrenchment and erosion caused heavy sediment pulses downstream, choking water use infrastructure, and putting road and recreation infrastructure in jeopardy. Similar events took place for the following few years, further degrading ecosystem function and water quality within Huntington Creek. Slowly the forests and side canyons of Huntington Creek began to regenerate with healthy aspen stands. The vulnerable slopes stabilized. Flood pulses have slowed as a result. Construction projects to protect road and irrigation infrastructure were funded and completed. But continued water quality and environmental impacts from the fire persist, particularly in the high gradient side canyons and ephemeral streams of Huntington Creek. Exacerbated by drought, stabilization and natural restoration has stagnated. These canyons and streams continue to contribute significant sediment loading and water quality concerns to Huntington Creek during heavy monsoonal rains. It will take decades still for the natural progression of stream stabilization to take place as further erosion causes additional woody debris and rock to fall into the stream channel. This material will jam up and slow water down, forcing sinuosity, rebuilding an inset floodplain, and ultimately capturing sediment and slowing down floods and high flows. This project is intended to speed up this natural process, using process-based restoration techniques to build these important log jams, capture sediment, force sinuosity, and reduce stream entrenchment. Huntington Creek is currently listed on the EPA's 303(d) list for impaired bodies of water due to high TDS and temperature, and low dissolved oxygen content. Contributing to these water quality concerns are the continued high sediment influxes from these canyons and ephemeral streams during high flows and rain events. These sediments reduce the efficiency of downstream water use infrastructure. They choke gravels and cobble substrates in the main channel of Huntington Creek, reducing pore space for oxygen creation through stream hydraulics. And they reduce ecosystem function by limiting macroinvertebrate populations for native and sport fish consumption. Continued restoration in Huntington Creek is needed to speed up the natural, post fire, stabilization process for downstream water quality which is critical to the communities and economies of Southeast Utah. Restoration will further enhance the important ecosystems of Huntington Creek that sustain big game populations, grazing production, and important recreational fisheries once considered a Blue-Ribbon fishery in the state of Utah. This project will tackle high return on investment opportunities for sediment capture and environmental restoration, improving this water quality and consequently the downstream communities and wildlife that depend upon it.

The Huntington Creek Tributaries Restoration Project is primarily divided into two areas. The first is restoration in Upper Nuck Woodward Creek, an important tributary to the Right Fork of Huntington Creek providing stable flows throughout the year and supporting a population of indigenous Colorado River Cutthroat Trout. The second area includes the small side canyons of the Right Fork, primarily focusing on Pole Canyon, Old Folks Flat, and the Bridges Campground. Restoration objectives in these areas are similar but there are some key differences that will be further outlined below. Nuck Woodward Creek Stream Restoration The Nuck Woodward Creek Stream Restoration Project is an effort to combat continued water quality effects in the greater Huntington Creek drainage and poor aquatic habitat for native fish. Greater stream function, floodplain connectivity, and riverine complexity will provide both Total Dissolved Solid reduction and additional habitat opportunities for Colorado river cutthroat trout. The primary objectives include two major goals for project success. First, a decrease of stream bank erosion and entrenchment through the construction of over a hundred low-tech process-based restoration structures on nearly a mile of Nuck Woodward Creek. Second, an increase in aquatic habitat for native cutthroat trout through the addition of stream complexity and pool features provided by these structures. Current stream conditions offer poor riverine function with excessive erosion and poor floodplain access. Water quality and habitat availability for aquatic species has been reduced due to these conditions. This project will provide stabilization measures and increased floodplain connectivity through the construction of LTPBR structures. These structures will also provide added complexity to Nuck Woodward Creek which will increase aquatic habitat through the creation of depth and flow variability. Side Canyon Restoration There are two primary goals associated with the Huntington Creeks Tributaries Restoration Project. The first is an increase in stream function of Huntington Creek's side canyons and ephemeral tributaries through the reduction of entrenchment and encouragement of sinuosity and floodplain connectivity. The second goal is a reduction of sediment influxes from these side canyons into Huntington Creek itself through both the increase in stream function, but also the capture of sediment by stream restoration structures. Both of these goals will lead to direct water quality improvements in Huntington Creek by reducing sediment loading. To accomplish these goals, low-tech process-based restoration will be performed on a minimum of two canyons in Huntington Creek's Right Fork burn scar totaling a critical half mile of restoration. These two canyons have been prioritized for restoration based on their current stream function limitations, current sediment contributions, accessibility, and availability of onsite building materials. An estimated 60 large structures will be built in the backcountry, and additional strategic felling will be performed where possible. These structures will be designed as stabilized log jams, using large logs, rocks where possible, and pounded untreated posts to capture sediment and force natural floodplain creation. The encouragement of stream function will speed up the natural progression of post fire stabilization.

This project will take place primarily in the Right Fork of Huntington Creek Drainage below Electric Lake, including Pole Canyon, Old Folks Flat, and The Bridges, between Electric Lake and the confluence of the Left Fork. Project restoration implementation will also take place in Upper Nuck Woodward Creek between first and second canyon. These areas were most heavily impacted by the 2012 Seeley Fire and have seen limited stabilization and regeneration since. Continued efforts to further restoration, natural resource abundance, water quality, and wildlife habitat are needed to speed up post fire processes. Since the Seeley Fire in 2012 natural regeneration and stabilization of Huntington Creek has been slow, sped up at times by planting, construction, and restoration efforts implemented by the NRCS, Forest Service, Trout Unlimited and Utah Division of Wildlife. However, many of these efforts have been stop-gaps or initial reactions to post fire habitat degradation, natural resource concerns, and road infrastructure damage. In the years since the fire and the immediate response of resource managers to provide for post fire stabilization and restoration, we have seen where the canyon needs additional help the most. As the drainage heals, some areas continue to cause water quality degradation, some areas continue to lack much needed aquatic and terrestrial habitat, and some areas lag behind others in vegetation, soil moisture, and general stability. Today we understand the needs of post fire restoration better than ever. We have seen areas of the Huntington Creek drainage return to natural function, while others have not, or have continued to degrade. Initial restoration and habitat efforts have stagnated, their benefits having been realized. Heavy sediment and debris flows from the side canyons and ephemeral tributaries of Huntington Creek continue to cause water quality and aquatic habitat limitations within them and downstream. Populations of native fish that survived the fire still deal with fragmented and limited habitat. Restoration proposed by this project is informed by these lessons learned from the post fire efforts of both resource managers and the natural world itself. Huntington Creek represents not only environmental interests, but the importance of water in western desert climates for agricultural and industrial uses as well. Relied upon for thousands of acres of farming and important power generation at the Huntington Power Plant, Huntington Creek is an integral part of the Emery County economy and culture. Water quality degradation has been consistent and unchanging since the 2012 fire. Efforts to improve this water quality and the lives of those downstream that depend upon it are badly needed. Hesitation to fund and continue restoration for wildlife and water quality in Huntington Canyon will cause significant delays. Requirements for much needed restoration and stabilization efforts will require long term investments in time and resources to realize meaningful changes in habitat and watershed function. Trout Unlimited and its partners are prepared to make these investments. Waiting for additional degradation will only increase these resource needs and the time frame required to realize successful project implementation. This proposal represents an important and crucial first step towards overall watershed health.

The Huntington Creek Tributaries Restoration Project is related to and will provide benefits in accordance with several state and local management plans. These management plans and their relevance are detailed below. - The Utah Mule Deer Statewide Management Plan denotes that "when [mule deer] forage contains only limited amounts of water, access to drinking water becomes important. The special distribution of mule deer populations is often positively associated with the availability of water in arid regions of Western North America. Restoration best management practices (BMP's) proposed in this project would increase the drought resiliency and water quality of water sources for mule deer, an important factor in population resiliency as noted by the statewide management plan. - The Huntington Creek Coordinated Resources Management Plan (CRMP) is a wide ranging plan that details the natural, wildlife, economic, and recreational resources within Huntington Creek and the areas of concern or degradation that are present. The Huntington Creek CRMP was developed in partnership with the Utah Division of Water Quality, and further outlines water quality impairments, causes of impairment, and possible projects to improve water quality. Resource concerns listed by the CRMP are "Post Fire Erosion / Vegetation of Soil, non-point source water quality pollution, noxious and invasive weeds." This project would propose best management practices that would help alleviate these resource concerns by increasing vegetation in post fire erosion prone areas. - The Emery County General Plan denotes county specific plans for resource management including water resources. The plan directly outlines a priority of Emery County is to "protect this valuable resource by promoting watershed protection measures and supporting the efficient management and use of water resources." Restoration and stabilization of the Huntington Creek drainage will increase water quality, quantity, and durability of the resources as prescribed. - The Utah Wildlife Action Plan directly lists "Essential Conservation Actions" as "restoring and/or improving degraded wildlife populations and habitat conditions or functions." Restoration proposed herein will both provide for native wild trout populations and the habitat conditions of aquatic and terrestrial wildlife. The Utah Wildlife Action Plan also lists Colorado River Cutthroat Trout as "High Threat of Impact" by habitat shifting and alteration. Protecting these habitats and improving them through project work as proposed herein would help to provide resiliency in these populations. - The Utah Forest Action Plan details its program goals to include "protecting and enhancing water quality and water supplies, protecting wildlife habitat and maintaining the connectivity and related values needed to ensure biodiversity, protecting riparian areas, and maintain and restoring natural ecosystem function." Each of these goals will be contributed to by the practices this project proposes. - The Utah Beaver Management Plan details habitat restoration Objective Two as promoting beaver-assisted restoration activities in areas where beaver activity can be expanded upon. Beavers have a large footprint in the right fork of Huntington Creek and stream restoration in the minor tributaries and Nuck Woodward Creek could expand beaver populations within the drainage. Beaver relocation efforts have been attempted in cooperation with this project in the fall of 2025. - The Utah Black Bear Management Plan directly relates populations and health of black bears to habitat and food sources, noting that "the abundance and dependability of seasonally important food sources may explain much of the variation in black bear density." The management plan further notes that "Bears in central and southeastern Utah forage on grasses and forbs in aspen, aspen-conifer and mountain brush as well as riparian areas." These riparian areas offer a durable and drought resilient food source for black bears as denoted by the state management plan. Projects under this proposal would increase riparian vegetation and function.

The Huntington Creek Tributaries Restoration Project will provide additional wildfire resiliency throughout the drainage. An increase in riparian function in Nuck Woodward Creek will increase the durability of the overall drainage to future wildfires, providing zones of stability and fire resistance. Additional phases of this project will further expand riparian function throughout additional tributaries of Huntington Creek and consequently the overall resilience of the drainage towards future wildfires. Restoration work will also provide additional stability for the side canyons and tributaries of Huntington Creek that have felt the effects of fires and flooding for the past twelve years. Wildfires in areas of limited riparian function also affect the aquatic life in these ecosystems significantly. Trout and other native aquatics subjected to ash flows and flooding following wildfires are at risk of extirpation or severe population declines. Healthy riparian zones will further protect these aquatics from such flows and mass death events in the case of wildfires or future controlled fire management. It is also important to consider this project as a native cutthroat resiliency project, protecting and improving the condition of Nuck Woodward Creek for native Colorado River Cutthroat Trout. The continued protection and proliferation of this population may prove important in the event of catastrophic wildfires in other portions of the species current range. Using these fish as a potential source of indigenous genetics for restoration may be required, and additional habitat and population sustainability is an important factor in this consideration.

The primary objective of this project towards water quality improvements is the reduction of sediment transport from Huntington Canyon's tributaries to downstream reaches of Huntington Creek already experiencing high total dissolved solids. A reduction in stream bank erosion and the encouragement of natural stream function within the project area through sediment capture and increased floodplain connectivity will provide for these water quality benefits. Huntington Creek continues to experience excessive fine sediment loading following the Seeley Fire despite over a decade of natural stabilization and regeneration of upland forests and historic upstream dam development typically providing for muted sediment transport. This fine sediment has contributed to choked spawning gravels in the right fork and mainstem of Huntington Creek which have reduced spawning capabilities for cutthroat trout and brown trout. It has also reduced macroinvertebrate diversity and populations in areas where sediment has also been deposited in typically cobble dominated substrates. Downstream sediment transport has further reduced the capacity of irrigation and industrial infrastructure for water use vital to the desert communities of Huntington, Cleveland, and Castle Dale, Utah. The majority of this sediment is being contributed to Huntington Creek not from its main channel, but from its tributaries during spring runoff and heavy monsoonal rains. Stream restoration in these tributaries is explicitly designed to further speed up natural stabilization of post fire stream function. Structures that add complexity to these tributaries including log jams, Beaver Dam Analogs, Post Assisted Log Structures, and strategic felling may drive additional erosion, but downstream structures will capture this sediment and use it to rebuild the entrenched stream channel. Adding this complexity is an important part of natural progression. Stream sinuosity slows water and erosive power. It creates point bars where willows and riparian vegetation can grow and further stabilize soils. Over time complexity and sediment capture will increase hydrologic function and reduce erosion and downstream sediment influxes. These sediment influxes are the primary causes of water quality concerns in Huntington Creek. Despite the majority of the Right Fork of Huntington Creek being bound upstream by Electric Lake Dam it still contributes to sediment loading due to these post fire concerns. This project will directly address these water quality problems in areas contributing to them.

Trout Unlimited and its partners have extensive experience in permitting and cultural clearance requirements associated with LTPBR restoration work. Efforts have been undertaken to obtain the required compliances needed for execution of this project. Primary compliance requirements include NEPA clearance and State Stream Alteration Permitting needs. NEPA requirements for work in Nuck Woodward Creek have been completed on previously authorized categorical exclusions. NEPA requirements for side canyon restoration have been initiated in partnership with the Manti La-Sal National Forest and will be completed in the winter of 2025-2026, before construction of this project is designated to begin. State Stream Alteration permits through the PGP10 joint permit will be sought for construction on both Nuck Woodward Creek and the Side Canyons designated for restoration under this project. The Permit for Nuck Woodward Creek has been written already and reviewed with the USFS. It will be submitted in February 2026 following renewal of the PGP10 agreement between the State and the USACE. Early submittal of this permit will provide time to troubleshoot any permitting requirements that may arise; however, none are anticipated. PGP 10 permits for side canyon restoration will be written in the winter of 2025-2026, reviewed with the USFS, and submitted in the early spring of 2026. There are no anticipated complications for these permits given the ephemeral nature of the side canyons and the restoration plans intended to be implemented.

Construction of habitat and stream restoration best management practices will be done with a variety of methods. Nuck Woodward Creek Stream restoration in Nuck Woodward Creek has been specifically designed using a suite of low-tech process-based restoration treatments depending on the needs of the stream in specific reaches. For each reach of Nuck Woodward Creek drone surveying has been performed and each reach has been walked by project managers, prescribing specific methods to individual reaches of the stream. These methods and the goals for restoration associated with their construction are further detailed below: - Beaver Dam Analogs: BDA's will be used to capture sediment, slow water, down and increase floodplain connectivity. They will also be used to sustain stream gradient and rebuild entrenched reaches of Nuck Woodward creek. - Bank Blasting BDA's: These structures force water to create additional sinuosity in the stream, adding complexity, and forming inset floodplains. Sediment from the erosion these structures cause will be a caught by other structures to build floodplains and restore entrenched reaches of the stream. - Post Assisted Log Structures: PALS will be used to reduce bank erosion, push high water onto the floodplain, and build stream complexity to increase aquatic habitat, and depth and flow variability. - Stabilized Log Jams: These structures will create complexity and add grade control to areas currently become entrenched. They will also fortify outside eroding banks. - Boulder Placements and Log Rollers: In areas of confined stream channels and floodplains, boulder placements and log placements will add important complexity and force pooling for aquatic fish and wildlife. Please see the documents section of this proposal for detailed plans for LTPBR construction in Nuck Woodward Creek. Side Canyon Restoration The primary methods used for construction in Huntington Canyon's side canyons is strategic felling and stabilized log jam construction. Local timber resources, primarily consisting of deadfall from the post fire burn scar, will be used to build stabilized log jams that will slow water down and capture sediment during monsoonal floods. These structures will further cause floodplain construction either through the capture of sediment or through forced sinuosity.

Monitoring for this project has been designed to specifically address the goals and objectives of the project in each area of restoration. These plans are further detailed below Nuck Woodard Creek Temperature monitoring above and below the project reach before and after restoration will be done to characterize changes in stream temperature following project implementation. Current data for downstream stream temperature has been collected through the spring, summer, and fall of 2025. However, additional data will be collected during 2026 and following restoration implementation. Stream bank erosion studies within the project reach have been initiated. Bank pins have been pounded into three banks considered representative of the project reach. These bank pins will be measured after the runoff in the spring of 2026 and again in the fall of 2026 to help determine the rate of erosion on vulnerable stream banks. Photo points and drone flights will be used before and after construction of stream bank restoration efforts to show changes in planar stream geomorphology and riparian vegetation growth within the project reach. Partnering with Utah State University of Utah we will also attempt to fly the project reach with thermal capable drones to show changes in water surface temperature and potentially ground temperatures through groundwater infusion before and after project construction. Simple stream surveying of representative reaches including cross sections and longitudinal surveys of structures before and after construction will be done on a select number of stream reaches to help characterize changes in pool availability, stream depth, sediment capture, and floodplain connectivity. This surveying should also help restoration planning in the future, detailing what worked where, and potentially why. Through this monitoring plan the success of the project and potential areas of improvement will be accurately described. Monitoring is a cornerstone of restoration and continued improvement of the waterways we work in as it informs future work and current conditions. Efforts by Trout Unlimited to secure a COR to perform characteristic and population determining shocking monitoring in Nuck Woodward Creek has also been initiated. If accepted providing population information over the next three years will be cornerstone of this monitoring effort. Side Canyon Restoration Photo points and drone flights will be used before and after construction of stream restoration efforts to show changes in hydrologic function, primarily floodplain connectivity and a decrease in stream entrenchment. Photo points will also show changes in vegetation which will further stabilize these side canyons. Basic stream surveying to help analyze the amount of sediment captured in restoration structures will be performed to determine the success of the project for capturing sediment. A select number of structures will be chosen to characterize the entire project. Surveying of stream elevations before and after at structure locations will be done to calculate the sediment captured at each representative structure.

The primary partners for this project have included the Manti La-Sal National Forest, Trout Unlimited, and Utah Division of Wildlife Resources. Site visits with the Manti La Sal National Forest have provided important context and project planning insite for successful project implementation. The forest service is also partnering with Trout Unlimited to expand previously used NEPA's to include side canyon restoration this winter before project implementation. The Utah DWR have provided support for the project and have actively been attempting beaver reintroductions in the Nuck Woodward Creek drainage. This project will improve the potential for beaver reintroductions to be successful, providing starter dams for them to build on and improving riparian vegetation. The San Rafael Conservation district and other local community partners such as PacifiCorp and the Huntington Cleveland Canal Company have provided support for this project as well. Improved water quality and drainage stability are important to these downstream water users. Water Quality and water quality have been designated as a resource concern by the conservation district for 2025.

Future management and further restoration in the Huntington Creek drainage will be driven by this project and the opportunity to continue to show success and progress in post fire restoration. Additional phases of LTPBR restoration on both Nuck Woodward Creek and the side canyons of Huntington Creek will be planned and implemented. Restoration and habitat construction plans have been initiated on the Right Fork of Huntington Creek as well, further expanding habitat and riverine function for aquatic wildlife and increasing water quality downstream.

There are four major Natural Resource uses within the Huntington Creek drainage that this project will increase the durability and sustainability of. These resources are outlined below. - Forests and Timber resources continue to regenerate following the 2012 Seeley Fire. Riparian health promoted by this project will provide for drought and future wildfire resiliency and durability that an overall healthy ecosystem relies on. Timber Resources in the side canyons and minor tributaries of Huntington Creek have been slow to regenerate. Additional stability within the canyon, promoted by future phases of this project will help increase this rate of growth and future natural resources. - Restoration practices included in this project will have the most significant effect on water quality. The riparian health of Huntington Creek remains limited in areas that experienced severe burning and post fire flooding. This project will reduce sediment transport to Huntington Creek, reduce water temperature in Huntington Creek's tributaries, and limit large debris flows that effect downstream water users and water use infrastructure for agricultural, municipal, and industrial uses. - The upper reaches of the Huntington Creek drainage offer important grazing opportunities for local producers including cattle ranchers and sheep herders. Riparian health and stream function are important drivers in the sustainability of these grazing resources. Continued loss of riparian function, water quality, and floodplain connectivity will decrease riparian and meadow forage as it is lost to sagebrush encroachment. Further destabilization and slow regeneration in the side canyons of Huntington Creek following the 2012 wildfire still limit grazing capacity. - Another important function of the Huntington Creek drainage for local communities and economic influx is the recreational opportunities in the drainage for sportfishing and big game hunting. Restoration activities proposed herein will increase habitat for both big game and trout, through an increase in riparian health, water quality, quantity, and stream function.